Wednesday, 15 April 2015

Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team Bahrain Grand Prix Preview

(Mercedes AMG pETRONAS f1 tEAM)

The Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team head into this weekend’s
Bahrain night race at the Sakhir circuit in Manama having secured their second
1-2 finish of the 2015 season last time out in China where Lewis Hamilton took
his second win of the season.

The Chinese Grand Prix was not without drama for Mercedes
however as following the race Nico Rosberg accused his team mate of
deliberately slowing down in order to back the German into Scuderia Ferrari’s
Sebastian Vettel. In the FIA post-race press conference Hamilton refuted this
claim and stated that he was simply looking after his own race.

Hamilton was backed up by Mercedes Executive Director
(Business) Toto Wolff who said that the reigning world champion did nothing
wrong.

The Silver Arrows now head to Bahrain this weekend where
last season they claimed a 1-2 finish under the Sakhir lights so they will be
hoping for a similar performance this weekend. The team currently lead the
Constructors champions by 40 points from Scuderia Ferrari, their closest rivals
in the race for the championship.

Lewis Hamilton goes into this weekend’s race with a 13 point
advantage of Sebastian Vettel in second place while Nico Rosberg is third
place, 17 points behind the double world champion.

Speaking ahead of this
weekend’s race Hamilton stated:

‘I was really buzzing
after the result in China and I have to say a big thank you to the team for the
amazing job they did all weekend. As always, though, my thoughts have been
completely focused on the next race from the moment we left the circuit on Sunday.
It’s been a great start – but for me last season showed that you can never feel
too comfortable and that’s even more the case this time around with Ferrari
right there with us. I don’t actually have the best record in Bahrain compared
to other circuits. Last year was my first win here and it was definitely one
I’ll remember after a great fight with Nico. That’s what I love about racing
and it’s a special feeling to come out on top in a battle like that. I’m in a
good place right now. The momentum is with me, so the target is to carry that
on and hopefully repeat last year’s performance.’

Nico Rosberg has finished on the podium in the first three
Grand Prix of the season following his second place in Australia, third in
Malaysia and another second place last time out in China. Speaking ahead of
this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix the German stated:

‘China was a
frustrating weekend for me and I’m glad we have another race right away to get
straight back to work. The team has made a great start to the season and, with
this incredible car they have built, I know I just need to find a little bit
more in myself to get back to the top step. I’ve never won in Bahrain but I’ve
taken the last two pole positions here and also set the fastest lap at this
circuit on my Formula One debut, so I know I have the pace. Of course, everyone
remembers the race last year and it would be great for the fans if we can put
on another great show for them this time. If we can do that but with the two
top steps in a different order it would be fantastic! It won’t be so easy with
the competition breathing down our necks. But that makes for even more exciting
racing, so I’m looking forward to a great battle and I’m determined to come out
on top.

The Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team have a fight on their hands
this season with Scuderia Ferrari proving to be their closest rivals so far
this season as Sebastian Vettel has shared the podium with Lewis Hamilton and
Nico Rosberg in the first three Grand Prix of the season and have taken one
victory this season.

Head of Mercedes Motorsport Toto Wolff stated:

After the wake-up call
in Malaysia, it was satisfying to see how the team pulled together for the race
in China. We did our homework, made improvements and scored a strong one-two
finish. But China also confirmed that Ferrari will be a threat in all
conditions this year, not just when it's very hot, and that we will have new
challenges to face as a team, with another competitor who is much closer to our
level of performance. ?We saw tensions between Nico and Lewis in the race and
we tackled them directly on Sunday night to stop anything carrying over to this
weekend. When you have intense competition, it's normal that it causes emotions
to run high - and that's not something we want to change. But both drivers are
now very focused on delivering maximum performance in Bahrain and our package
should cope well with the demands of the circuit. We maintain our philosophy of
letting the drivers race - but they both know that the number one priority for
the team is to win for Mercedes-Benz.’

‘We were very happy
with the weekend in China. It was good to have such a smooth weekend in the
garage and all credit to the team in Shanghai and back at the factories for the
preparation that went into this race. Looking ahead to Bahrain, last year saw
arguably the best race of the season at this circuit – something we very much
hope to see once again. It was the first night race in Bahrain and the two
battling Silver Arrows looked spectacular under the flood lights. This is an
event where our paint shop team show off their great work to best effect!
Qualifying and the race both take place in darkness, where track temperature is
very similar to ambient, while practice takes place in far hotter track
temperatures earlier in the day – presenting a particular challenge to optimize
the car. The circuit is also hard on both fuel consumption and brakes, so it
will be an interesting weekend and no doubt another tough contest on track with
the team from Maranello.?’